Emily, University and Dealing with That Blonde
by RedHeadedTemptress
Summary: Emily is just starting Uni, she hasn't met Naomi, or the gang yet. But don't worry she will ;) Basically it's about her life at University. Rated M for later chapters and yeah I suck at summaries, but give it a go? :)
1. Chapter 1

**So, hey :P I've been thinking and writing and scrapping and writing and thinking some more :L Originally the only thing I was going to post were one-shots, but I had this idea that I felt needed more attention than a short story. So here goes, my first proper story I hope you enjoy, and please don't hesitate to hit that review button at the end of each chapter because I love feedback, it lets me know what yous are all thinking and where I can improve etc. Happy reading J Claire x**

**Disclaimer: I do not own skins, but boy if I did, it'd be a show of pure Naomily.**

Emily stared at the contents of her suitcase. Everything was neatly packed, folded and categorised. Her bra's and underwear were in the bottom right corner of the suitcase. Her t-shirts and tops on the left, the jeans, shorts and skirts beside them, took up most of the room. Then there was a separate compartment in the lid of the suitcase to hold her chargers, hair straighteners, make-up and a couple of pairs of shoes. She raised her eyebrows at it and smiled. Her mother had really outdone herself. Everything was perfect. Or was it? She sat down on her bed and stared around the room. It was almost bare, devoid of the posters and memories that had once covered the walls of both hers and Katie's side of the room. She sighed. Even though most of the memories of their shared bedroom, reminded her of the times she'd cried herself to sleep, because of the pain of not being accepted for who she was. There were some happy ones too and it was still difficult to let it go, leave it all behind.

She zipped her suitcase shut after throwing in a few more t-shirts; ones her mum had obviously, deliberately left out, and hauled it off the bed. When she reached the door, she turned around for one last reminder of her childhood and adolescence, and then shut it behind her. Taking a deep breath and smiling, she began to lug the suitcase down the stairs. It hit each step with a thud and on the last few, she met James. "Hey Emily, need a hand?" he grinned. "Uhm, no thanks James I have four steps to go, I think I'll manage from here, but if you'd asked me ten minutes ago, I would've jumped at the offer." She smiled. "Oh. Well I'm just back, me and Gordon McPherson were chasing this girl, Sophie, from our class, coz she lost a bet and promised Gordon she'd show us her-" "That's alright James," Emily laughed; she really didn't want to know what her pervy little brother was up to. "Have you seen mum?" she asked now shoving the suitcase down the last few steps and parking it beside the front door. "Yeah, she's in the kitchen I think." He called as he ran, on all fours, upstairs.

Emily entered the kitchen to see her mum, putting a couple of pots and pans into a cardboard box labelled: Kitchen Ware. Beside the countertop there were other boxes piled on top of each other. One was labelled: C.D's, D.V.D's and Posters and another one labelled: Books. "Mum, you don't have to do all this; I could've done it myself." She said, walking over to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. "Don't be silly Emily, I'm your mother. Besides, I'm just glad you're going to university at all." She said, bending down to pick up a copy of 'The Fault In Our Stars' by John Green. Emily rolled her eyes and sat down at the breakfast counter. Ever since her mother had finally accepted her sexuality, (and by that she meant, stopped giving her shit about it, and trying to set her up with every boy that came into town.) she seemed to want to make up for the hell she'd put Emily through, by cleaning her room, cooking her favourite meals and packing for her. She'd even said nothing along the lines of "I-told-you-so." when Emily had changed her mind and decided to apply to colleges. "So have you got everything then?" her mum said turning around and beaming at her. "I don't know," Emily laughed, "you tell me." Jenna smiled and looked down at all the neatly piled boxes surrounding her. "I think so Ems, you're all set." She said and smiled again, though Emily thought she saw a flicker of sadness in her eyes. "Right, I'll help you get them into the car then." Emily said, getting up and grabbing the box labelled: Food.

In the end it had taken the three of them, Jenna, James and Emily, to lift the bulging suitcase into the boot of their car. The back seats were wedged with the boxes, and Emily had the suspicion that she wasn't going to use half of the stuff her mum had packed. They stood awkwardly around the car, it was time for goodbyes. None of them knew what to say. Suddenly Jenna burst into tears. Emily looked at James who wore the same expression as herself; shock. "Mum?" Emily said, putting her hand on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry Emily!" her mum sobbed. Emily laughed in disbelief and pulled her mother into a tight hug. "It's okay mum." She mumbled into her shoulder, "Come on, stop crying. What would Katie think? You're a Fitch, remember?" she said softly. Jenna pulled back but kept her hands on Emily's shoulders. Then, she sniffed and steeled herself. "I'm so proud of you Ems," she smiled, Emily rolled her eyes. "Now, you come home and visit every other weekend, yes?" Jenna said, wiping her eyes with her sleeve. "Of course, don't worry about me. I'll be fine." She said and turned to James to say goodbye, but was shocked to see he was crying too. "Don't go Emily!" he cried, "I can't live with mum and dad on my own!" Emily laughed and hugged him hard. "Jesus, two Fitch's crying in one day? Next there'll be headlines of natural disasters headed this way." She laughed and let him go. "Don't worry James, just find Gordon McPherson if you need to get away from them." She said, loud enough for only him to hear. James smiled and hugged her again before wiping his face on his sleeve.

Emily pulled her keys out of her pocket and headed for the car. She took one last look at her mother and brother, smiled, waved and got into the front seat, slamming the door behind her. The car started with a bit of a stutter but then the engine ran smoothly. She rolled the passenger window down and yelled as she was pulling away, "BYE FITCH- BITCH, BYE PERV!" Just before she rounded the street corner, she caught a glimpse of Jenna's seething expression and James grinning like a twat. Some things were never going to change.

Two hours later she was blasting music through her car speakers as she pulled into a café parking space. She switched off her engine, locked the car and flicked the butt of her cigarette to the side. Wrapping her jacket tighter around herself, she shivered as she went inside. It was bloody freezing in London. The café was lovely, inside there was a long counter with everything gourmet you could think of; muffins, spectacular cakes, brownies and cookies to name a few. She wanted to eat the whole cabinet. More delightful than that however, was the pungent and beautiful smell of coffee that was in the air. She closed her eyes and inhaled it for a few seconds. When she opened them again, an attractive young guy was staring at her from behind the counter. His eyebrows were raised questioningly and the corners of his mouth were turned up into a smirk. He had dark brown eyes and dark curly hair that matched and he wore a black shirt, buttoned up to his throat with the words; 'Kingston Café' embroidered on the right breast. "What?" Emily smiled as she moved towards the counter. "Have you never just enjoyed the glorious scent of coffee?" she asked. He shook his head and smiled. "Not really, I work here so I smell it all the time, even when I go home, my clothes reek of it." He grinned and grabbed a pen and pad. "What can I get you then Mrs. Coffee?"

"Uhm...a latte anyway," she said and smiled when he rolled his eyes. "Aaand…one of those." She said pointing to an almond croissant in the cabinet. "Coming right up." He said and passed her, her table number. She thanked him, payed and sat down near a window. She wanted to get a feel for the city. Or at least part of it, it was so big and from what she could tell, she wasn't even close to the city centre yet. When the guy came over with her order, he must've noticed she was frowning because he asked; "Are you lost or something?" "What? Oh no I'm not…well actually, I'm just wondering, how do I get to U.C.L from here?" she asked him, tucking into her croissant. He smiled again, "Oh, you're studying here? You've just got here haven't you? What are you studying?" Emily swallowed a lump of croissant to answer him. "Yes and yes and I'm studying psychology." "Cool," he grinned, "Well, if you take a right out here," he said pointing out the window, "then keep going straight for about ten minutes, then turn right again you should arrive near Bloomsbury campus." "Alright, great, thanks very much…uh?" "Freddie." The guy grinned again and stuck his hand out for her to shake. "Well thanks Freddie," she smiled shaking his hand "I'm Emily." "Nice to meet you Emily, good luck with Uni and I hope I see you around again." He said and with that he was gone. Emily grabbed her bag and got up. Heading for the door, she realised she had something in her hand; a piece of paper, she opened it when she was outside and laughed. The guy called Freddie had given her his number.

_'Sorry Fred's' _she thought. _'That isn't ever going to happen.' _ She shoved the piece of paper into her pocket and got into her car. Starting the engine with the familiar jolt, she pulled out and turned right. Following the road for ten minutes, just like he'd said, then turning right again she was glad to see a large sign that read 'U.C.L. Bloomsbury campus.' and an arrow pointing straight ahead. She smiled and continued driving. For the first time, in a long time she was excited to start school.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again :P so sorry about how long it's taken to upload this but I've been really busy with exams and stuff…so please forgive me, but here's the next chapter, thanks for reading. I LOVE YOU ALL! :L I hope you enjoy and once again please let me know what yall think. Until next time.**

**Claire x**

**Disclaimer: I wish I owned Skins.**

Emily grinned; she was standing outside her new house, map in hand and luggage at her feet. It was beautiful; red bricked, with a big white door and wide white windows. It stood third in a row of about thirty-or-so of the same student houses. It had taken her a while to find it, even with the map she'd brought, but once she'd spotted the sign that read 'Bloomsbury Student Housing' she'd managed alright.

Emily smiled broadly to herself. _I'm finally here. _She thought. _A fucking new start. _Gathering her things and stuffing the map into her jacket pocket, she fished for her keys. She struggled with the lock but eventually opened it, tripping through the door with all her baggage. She landed in a heap on a pile of letters and junk mail. "Oh, a-are you alright?" she heard a timid voice from above her. It was then she realised she was at eye level with a pair of scuffed trainers. _So much for a new start. _She thought. _Way to make a great first impression Emily. _She sighed and stood up to face the person that had greeted her. He was just a little taller than her, with a head of bushy brown curls and warm, friendly eyes. She instinctively liked him. "Yeah, I'm fine, thanks." She smiled, "I'm Emily Fitch, it's nice to meet you uhm..?" The boy grinned and stuck out his hand for her to shake, "Oh, hello Emily, I'm Jonah Jeremiah Jones, except everyone calls me JJ, I don't really know why because they could just call me Jonah, my mum calls me Jonah, but only when she's angry, that's when she uses my full name, I guess I like JJ though because-" "JJ!" Emily laughed; he was rambling as though she wasn't even there. "That's okay, I'll just stick to JJ as well then yeah?" she smiled. "Right. Yes. Sorry, I have a tendency to ramble, I have Asperger's syndrome you see." He frowned slightly at the mention of it.

"Oh," Emily said and raised her eyebrows, "Funny, I'm here for psychology, I guess you could be a study for my course work then." "Yes. I suppose I could." JJ smiled, "Would you like some help with your luggage?" he offered politely. "Yeah, that would be great, thanks." She said, and for the first time, she took in her surroundings. They were in a hallway with bare white walls. On her left were a couple of blue doors and a corridor that led to another set of blue doors. On her right was a flight of stairs, she could just make out another blue door on the landing at the top. She was a little disappointed with the monotony of the interior, compared to the beauty outside the house. _I guess that's what to expect from student accommodation. _She thought and decided not to dwell on it. She turned to JJ and giggled slightly when she saw him struggling with one of her suitcases. "Uhm, I'll take that one and you take this one." She said, passing him the lighter of the two. "Would you mind showing me to my room JJ?" she asked, pulling the suitcase up onto its wheels. "Of course, no problem, what number are you?" she looked at her keys. "Five." "Okay, you're just down this hall then." He said and yanked her suitcase off to the left.

Her room was pretty small, a box as Katie would've called it. There was a bed, a desk, a chest of drawers, a sink and mirror and a wardrobe. All the essentials. The walls were also bare and white and the carpet was worn and a depressing grey colour. _Well, it looks like I'll definitely be redecorating. _She thought and silently thanked her mum for packing all her books, C.D's and posters after all. JJ helped her unpack most of her things, but left her to sort through her clothes. They had just finished unloading all her food into the cupboards in the kitchen when there was a loud banging on their front door. "OI! JAYKINS! YOU IN?!" A muffled voice of someone with a harsh Derby accent rang through the hallway. JJ grinned, "Oh, that'll be my friend Cook." He said and rushed off to answer the door. Emily debated whether or not to finish unpacking or go and meet JJ's friend. Eventually she decided it would be rude not to and if he was anything like JJ, she would probably like him. She shuffled awkwardly to the door. Even though she'd mostly gotten over the crippling shyness she'd suffered as a teenager, she still found it difficult when meeting new people.

The guy, Cook, was tall with short, dirty blonde hair and crooked teeth. He was laughing like a maniac when she arrived at the door. "Come on Jay! You have to come mate, there's gonna be some quality pussy, I promise you." He looked up when Emily reached them. "Speaking of quality pussy! Who's this sexy little redhead? Nice tits love." He said and wiggled his eyebrows at her. Emily raised her own eyebrows in disbelief, "Thanks. I grew them myself." Cook laughed again. She looked at JJ for an explanation of the guy's behaviour. "Sorry Emily, this is Cook, he has no filter when it comes to women. Sort of like me actually." He said smiling. Emily nodded; she gathered that Cook was just a lad really. "So, how bout it then? You ladies comin' out tonight or what?" JJ shrugged and turned to Emily, "A new club opened down town a couple of months ago, Cook says there'll be quality pussy, but I don't see how it can be much different than the pussy you get in your average club. If you think about it really, there'll still be the same kinds of-" "JJ, locked on." Cook laughed. "Right. Sorry. Would you like to come Emily, you can meet my other friend Freddie?"

Emily couldn't help but smile. She'd only just arrived and had already made two new friends, sort of. One was odd and offbeat, the other was pretty vulgar but she liked them both anyway. "Well. If there's quality pussy to be had. You can count me in." she said and nearly doubled over at JJ's expression. He spluttered and paled a little. Cook threw his head back and howled with laughter. "A muff-monkey eh?," he grinned "Well that's more than okay with me love, as long as you're up for a night out with the Cookie Monster, see ya tonight ladies, 9 o'clock, don't be late. Later Gay-Jay." He said, and left still laughing. "Oh, my giddy aunt." JJ whispered to himself. Emily laughed, this was going to be an interesting night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello, hello, hello again :) Happy Monday to you all! **

**Sorry about how slow I am but thanks for bearing with me.**

**Here's the next chapter, I hope you enjoy.**

**Claire x**

**Disclaimer: I do not own skins, though that would be a fine thing.**

"Honestly JJ, you look fine." Emily laughed at her new friend and housemate. For the last hour or so, the poor boy had been fretting over what to wear, and had changed his outfit at least six times. She'd never even met a girl who was this bad. _Katie _wasn't even this bad and that was speaking volumes. "Yes, but Emily, I read online that the secret to attracting the opposite sex has all to do with first impressions. And if Cook's correct in his reasoning that there will indeed be "Quality Pussy" available to the average, if somewhat socially inept gentleman, such as myself, then a first impression is the most important factor to consider." He smiled, and smoothed down his black shirt and blue tie. "Okay, well we're going clubbing so I think, at the moment you're a tad overdressed." She laughed, slipped the tie from around his neck and unbuttoned his shirt to reveal a nice black and white Beatles t-shirt. "There. Much better, " she said, "and if this look doesn't work, you can always just get them really drunk." He laughed, "I suppose I could, I never thought of that." Emily rolled her eyes at him. "Right are we ready then?" she asked and headed for the door.

Outside the cool night air hit the back of her exposed neck and sent a shiver down her spine. They walked together in a comfortable silence until they reached the exterior of a pleasant looking pub. A sign near the door read 'The Swagman." A man in his late thirty's stood outside the door smoking; he greeted them with a thick Australian accent as they went inside. "That's Dale," JJ said as they pushed their way through the throng of people queuing at the bar. "He owns this bar and two more, one in Italy and one in Ireland, he's rather nice actually and we come here quite often so he's inclined to give us discounts and freebies." "JAYKINS!" Cook's deafening roar came from her right, she looked up to see him gripping JJ in a tight hug, and then he pulled back and ruffled his hair affectionately. Cook turned to her and grinned his crooked grin. "Red, I'm glad you could make it," he said and motioned to a guy who was standing nearby talking to a young woman. The guy looked up and Emily had to stifle a laugh that had bubbled up in her throat. It was the guy Freddie she'd met in the café that morning. He grinned at her sheepishly. "Freds, this is-""Emily." Freddie finished and extended his hand to her. She laughed then and shook it. "Hello again Freddie." She smiled. The two other boys looked confused. "Wait. Do you two know each other?" Cook asked, motioning between them with two fingers. "Sort of." Freddie said, "We met in…Kingston Café this morning?" Emily asked, the three of them nodded in understanding.

"Right, now that we all know each other, shall we get this party started then?" Cook asked them, rubbing his hands together and grinning toothily. He handed them all a shot of tequila, "Just getting started babe." He winked at Emily when she winced.

Another two rounds of tequila and a few beers later Emily could feel the warmth of the alcohol coursing through her veins. She'd concluded that she really liked the small part of London she'd seen, even her boring student accommodation. She didn't know if it was the atmosphere of the city that constantly hummed and buzzed with activity, or if it had something to do with the three new people she'd just met, and how willingly they'd accepted her, just like that. It was so refreshing that it made her grin like an idiot. "What are you smiling about?" Freddie asked her, she looked up from her drink and watched him lick the paper of his rollie and fold it into a cigarette. Cook and JJ were nowhere to be seen. "Nothing," she smiled again, "I just like it here already." She shrugged and took a mouthful of beer. He nodded, "I know what you mean, I felt the same way when I got here…smoke?" He asked and offered her another rollie. "Sure, thanks." She smiled and took it, getting up and following him out to the smoking area. "Course, me, Cook and JJ have known each other since we were kids, so that helped the with the whole scary Uni thing." He laughed and took another drag of his cigarette as he passed her the lighter. "Really?" Emily asked as she lit her own. Freddie nodded, Cook works here because he didn't want to go to Uni, and both me and JJ, like you have just started studying in U.C.L." "Interesting," she said and frowned a little. "What?" Freddie asked and raised his eyebrows questioningly at her. "Nothing, it's just, I think that a huge part of going to Uni is getting away from everything you know and everyone…well not _everyone…_it's just I have a twin sister and we used to spend every fucking waking minute together, sharing everything and…until we were nine, we used to take a dump at the same time." They both laughed at that but then Emily looked at the ground and tried to hold back a wave of emotion that had come from the pit of her stomach. She felt tears begin to prickle behind her eyes. _Used to. Not anymore._

She was brought back into the room by a firm hand on her shoulder. "Emily, are you alright, do you feel sick?" Freddie asked her, he looked rather alarmed and then Emily realised she was bent over with her hands on her knees. She took a deep breath to compose herself and stood up, smiling. "I'm fine, just drunk." "Oh." Freddie laughed, "Well, I think it's about time we found Cook and visited this club he's always banging on about." She nodded and they pushed their way back into the pub where they found JJ and Cook waiting near the door. A cigarette dangled from Cook's lips and he frowned when he saw them. "Where the fuck have you two been?" He checked his watch, "It's a quarter to twelve mate, if we don't go soon, they'll be fucking _charging_ us and I'm not having that." Freddie rolled his eyes at his best mate. "Alright Cook, let's go then."

The club looked pretty standard on the outside; large wooden double doors and a neon pink sign that read; '_After Hours.' "_Cook, this better not be a strip club, or I swear I'll-""Relax, Freds as much as Red would like it, it's not a strip club." Cook laughed, winking at her and putting his arm around her shoulders. Freddie shot her a confused look from her left as the bouncers nodded them through and they made their way through the foyer. The club was pretty elegant as far as clubs went. There was a nice carpet, two fancy bars, one at the back and the other just inside the door. The dance floor was pretty small but its colourful tiles made up for its size and thankfully the air didn't smell too strongly of beer and sweat like most clubs. The best thing however, was the winding wooden staircase that led to a wide windowed, heated smoking area. Emily craned her neck to see small clusters of people chatting, laughing and kissing, thinking no one could see them despite the giant, well-polished windows. "It's nice right?" Cook said wiggling his eyebrows. Emily laughed and the three of them nodded in agreement. "Well, as much as I've enjoyed your company, this is where I love ya and leave ya kids; it's time for Cookie to get scouting, Red, there's plenty to go round." He said and grinned at the three of them before bounding off into the depths of the club.

Emily turned to JJ and Freddie. "I gotta pee! I'll meet you both in a bit!" she yelled into JJ's ear over the uncomfortably loud dubstep playing. JJ nodded and smiled happily, while Freddie chatted to a beautiful girl with long black hair. She navigated her way to the back bar and pushed past a wasted couple who were all but fucking up against the counter. She sighed audibly at them and dug in her pockets for her purse. "Fucking ridiculous isn't it?" she heard a voice beside her. She looked up and found the air that was in her lungs non-existent. Gorgeous icy blue eyes stared back at her. A girl of about her age, with a shock of peroxide blonde hair and full pink lips, smirked and nodded towards the emaciated couple; now grunting like cave people. "Y-yeah. Ridiculous." Emily stammered and inwardly cringed. The girls smirk grew wider, noticing Emily's flustered state. "I mean, P.D.A has always bugged me, but this is beyond embarrassing." She smiled. The girl nodded and leaned against the bar while extending a hand. "Naomi." She smiled back. Emily took her hand and the mere contact sent an electrifying tingle down her spine. Saying that Naomi was beautiful was a complete understatement. "So Emily, what brings you to _After Hours_?" "Oh you know, first night at Uni, my housemate thought it would be fun to come here." "Clearly." Naomi said and laughed as she eyed the couple with disdain. Emily laughed with her. "You're not having a good time though?" Naomi asked. Emily smiled "I am, well besides dumb and dumber beside me here, it's alright. Better now." She said and couldn't believe she was flirting with the gorgeous, witty young woman beside her, but Naomi frowned and was just about to open her mouth, when a pretty girl with green eyes and honey coloured hair appeared. She wrapped her arms around Naomi's waist and gave her a chaste kiss. "Hey babe, did you miss me, who's your friend?" she eyed Emily territorially. Emily rolled her eyes and stood her ground. Pleased this girl thought she was a threat. Naomi sighed. "Natasha, you were in the bathroom for five minutes and this is Emily."

The girl smiled falsely at her. "Cool, you studying at U.C.L?" she asked, just making small talk to appear friendly. Emily nodded and returned the fake smile. "So are we, what are you studying?" Naomi asked. "Psychology, you?" "Politics and Sociology." Naomi smirked. "Well we'd love to stay and chat but, Naomi promised me a bag of chips didn't you Naoms?" Natasha whined like a child. Emily suppressed the urge to gag and kept her fake smile plastered to her face. Naomi rolled her eyes again and looked at Emily. "I gotta go, but it was nice to meet you Emily, see you Monday." She said as her girlfriend tugged on her sleeve. Emily smiled and nodded in response, watching as they walked away, Natasha's arm firmly, protectively around Naomi's waist. Just before they rounded the corner, Natasha looked back and threw her a warning glare. Emily sighed and decided it was time to go home.

When she'd finally found JJ he was trying to chat a girl up by performing a card trick for her. Emily laughed and pulled JJ to the side. "Wanna go?" "But Emily I was just about to," he looked up and sighed when he saw the girl had disappeared. "Yeah. I suppose I'm pretty tired, shall we share a taxi? Cook and Freddie are both with girls so I expect we should leave them to it." Emily nodded and they headed for the door together.

Emily stuck her key into the lock and managed to enter without falling on her face again. She got into bed and thanked JJ when he brought her tea and nutella on toast. "JJ, I had a good time tonight, thank you." She said and smiled at him "Me too, which is pretty rare because I don't drink, but it was fun, I had fun. Thank you for coming and goodnight." He said before shutting the door. Emily laughed at him, pulled the covers closer to her and flicked the light off before settling down to sleep. Images of icy blue eyes swan behind her eyelids as she drifted off.


	4. Chapter 4

**Here's the next chapter, plenty of introspective Emily in this story I think, but not to worry there will most definitely be some of Naomi's P.O.V. So, what did we all think of Natasha on a first impression? What's that? You hate her?...Of course you do. So do I. :L Just so I don't offend anyone either, I should probably say that I've never been to London, so everything in this story is completely made up. Or what I would imagine it to be like as I know very little about it :P So I hope you don't mind I've let my imagination run its course, particularly for this chapter.**

**Enjoy my avid fanfictioners :P until next time,**

**Claire x**

"Fuck." Emily muttered under her breath as she hurried down yet another empty corridor. Every corner she turned looked completely foreign to her, even though she'd had a thorough tour of the college on her first day of lectures. She stopped and clutched her notepads to her chest, looking around her. She was standing in a long, wide corridor with a bright green carpet, white walls and large, wood framed windows. She checked her watch again and sighed. She was already fifteen minutes late for her lecture and completely lost. "Fuck, fuck, FUCK!" she cursed aloud, running a hand through her bright red hair. "Alright there Emily?" came a voice from behind her. She whipped around and was momentarily stunned to see the gorgeous blonde she'd met three days before, with a shit-eating grin plastered to her face. _She remembered my name! _Was all she could think as she shifted from one foot to another.

"Hi…uuh…Naomi, yeah I'm fine, just…just a bit lost." She admitted and sighed, blushing because Naomi was clearly enjoying her embarrassment. "Not to worry," Naomi said, strolling casually over to her, "I thankfully know every inch of this college like the back of my hand…where is it you're supposed to be? I'm pretty sure it's not up here, these are the sociology lecture halls." She grinned. Emily's eyes flitted to her notepads again, avoiding Naomi's. She was afraid if she stared into them for too long she would get completely lost in their icy blueness, and forget the world was still turning around her. She concentrated on her timetable, and tried not to think of how effortlessly beautiful Naomi looked in just a t-shirt and jeans. "Well, I'm supposed to be at my first English lecture, but…I guess I took a wrong turn or something." She frowned as Naomi laughed at her. "I think you took more than one Emily," she snorted and Emily couldn't help but smile, drinking in the sweet sound of her laughter. "Well, since I'm so nice and all, I'll be your map if you want," Naomi smiled, "And I'd say yes if I were you, because my pervy old lecturer is going to come down here in a minute and stare at your tits." She said and glanced down the length of the corridor. "How do you know he's going to stare at _my _tits? He might just like yours." Emily laughed. "Because, he stares at _everyone's_ tits, even those of the opposite sex who are unfortunate enough to have let themselves go." She replied and steered Emily towards the nearest stairs, chuckling softly.

They had walked down several corridors before Emily began to hear signs of life, in the form of student's voices. "So you're studying English as well as psychology then?" Naomi asked as they rounded the corner of another long corridor. Emily smiled, "Yeah, sort of, I'm taking an arts degree, but I'm only really interested in psychology. I love English too, but I want to be a psychiatrist." "Interesting…" Naomi smirked, quirking an eyebrow up at her. "What?" "Nothing, I just wouldn't have pegged you as a psychiatrist, you don't _look_ like a psychiatrist." Naomi said. Emily giggled, "What does a psychiatrist look like then?" "I dunno," Naomi shrugged, "A bald, old man with glasses?" they laughed as they came towards a pair of grey double doors, Naomi held the door for her and smiled warmly as Emily passed underneath her arm. They reached the end of the hall and stopped outside a blue door. "Well, this is it, lecture hall four, English." Naomi said and smiled again. "Thanks so much Naomi, I'd literally be lost without you." She said and smiled as she turned to leave, before she did something stupid like pin her to a nearby wall. Naomi grabbed her wrist before she had the chance to leave, and Emily's heart jumped into her throat. "Wait," Naomi laughed softly, "I just wanted to ask you if you wanted to have lunch with me later. Say around two? I'm finished my lectures by then…how're you fixed?" Emily relaxed slightly, though her heart was still thumping erratically in her chest at the thought of spending _more_ time with Naomi. "Erm, yeah, I'd like that, I'm finished here at quarter past." She smiled nodding to the blue door. Naomi grinned broadly, "Great, Tash is out with her mum today and the thought of spending lunch alone wasn't very appealing, so great, I'll meet you out front at quarter past then?" She asked, and Emily nodded though she was slightly crestfallen after being reminded of Natasha's existence. "You sure you can find your way?" Naomi joked as she backed off down the corridor. Emily rolled her eyes and waved, "See you." She said and watched as Naomi turned and walked the rest of the way down the corridor. There was something so different about her and it made her heart stutter. She sighed audibly and cringed at herself. Then remembering where she was, she glanced at her watch and grabbed the door handle, entering the lecture hall somewhat apprehensively.

'_Well, that was surprisingly enjoyable.' _Emily thought, as she leaned outside the main entrance to the University, smoking the end of a cigarette and waiting for Naomi. She scraped her shoe across the butt of the fag and adjusted her bag strap on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw the girl she was waiting for, making her way through the throngs of students moving from lecture to lecture. Naomi smiled when she saw her and picked up her pace. "Sorry for keeping you waiting Ems." she said when she'd stopped on front of her. Emily's heart fluttered at the cavalier use of a nickname. Up until now only Katie had ever called her Ems and she'd hated it. She definitely liked it now. "That's okay," Emily managed to say, her head was taking over her ability to function normally around this girl. "I'm not in any rush." She smiled. "Good to hear," Naomi said as they started walking across campus "So, I know this great place, that does everything you could think of, cakes, wraps, toasties, pastries, not to mention it has the _best_ coffee in the whole city." "Sounds perfect." Emily smiled as they stopped in the student car park. Naomi nodded, "There's only one problem," Emily looked at her quizzically. "…well it's not exactly in the city centre, it's about a ten minute drive actually…but I thought you might like uh, a sort of a tour…I could show you all the cool parts of London, like all the bits that people seem to forget about when they're going through the whole... '_Oh my God I'm in London' _phase." Emily blinked and grinned at the blonde. "Sure, that sounds like fun, I'd love for you to give me a tour." "Great! Emily there's so many cool places, I'm definitely going to take you to Camden town, it's brilliant, and the markets are amazing." Naomi babbled as they got into her car. She threw her bag onto the backseat and began to reverse slowly. "But I'm starving, so first we're getting food into me, or I'll be a very grouchy tour guide." Emily giggled as they pulled out of the car park.

They whizzed by shops and restaurants and started to make their way towards the exit of the city. Emily started to wonder where they were going and if Naomi was actually kidnapping her, when she turned left just before the exit. _'Shame,' _she thought, _'would've been better if she _was _kidnapping me.' _"Well, we're here." Naomi said and she snapped out of her reverie to see they were parked in a wedged parking lot. It looked pretty familiar to her. "Kingston Café." Naomi grinned proudly as they got out of the car. Emily giggled. "What?" Naomi asked as she held the door to the place for her. It was warm inside and Emily was hit with the glorious scent of coffee the minute she walked in the door. "I've been here before," she explained as they sat down at a table beside the window. "I stopped here on my first day, when I was driving into the city." "Oh," Naomi said and there was a flicker of disappointment in her eyes, but then she smiled, "well you just so happened to stumble upon the best café in London." Emily opened her mouth to reply when the waiter appeared at their table. "Hello again Emily," Freddie smiled warmly at her. "Hey Freddie." Naomi stared at him blankly. "Oh, Naomi this is Freddie, he's my housemate's friend, Freddie, this is Naomi. She's studying in U.C.L and my tour guide for today." Naomi smiled and shook his hand. "Nice to meet you," he said and smiled again, "So what can I get you then? A Latte for Emily anyway and Naomi?" he looked up from his pad. "Cappuccino, and could we get two of the specials?" She asked. "An excellent choice," he said in a mock French accent, "I'll be right back with your order." And he disappeared behind the counter.

Naomi grinned mischievously, "He likes you." She said and poked her in the arm. Emily rolled her eyes in response. "Sure he does." Naomi shrugged, and held her hands up, "I'm just making an observation. And I'm hardly ever wrong." "Well, he's going to be very disappointed then because-" "Two specials, and two coffee's for two beautiful ladies." Freddie had returned with their order and interrupted Emily mid-sentence. "Thanks Freddie." Emily smiled sheepishly while Naomi choked back a laugh. He beamed at her before disappearing into the kitchen again. "Well, why is he going to be disappointed then?" Naomi asked taking a sip of her coffee. Emily lifted her eyes from the food on her plate and locked them with Naomi's. She blushed when she realised she was about to tell her she was gay. "…Uhm. Just, not interested is all…" she stuttered. _'What's the matter with you Emily?' _she thought, _'Naomi IS gay, so why would it matter if you said you were?' _Naomi blinked and studied her for a second, but then she smiled. "The wannabe hipster look, not do it for you Ems?" She smirked into her coffee. Emily laughed and was glad for the ease of tension. "So," Naomi said, tucking into the glorious looking toasted wrap on front of her. "There's got to be more to you than just Psychology and English, yeah? I mean, no offence, but you look like an art school dropout…" Emily chewed and swallowed, reminding herself to thank Naomi for the order. It was delicious. "Thanks." she said sarcastically and took a mouthful of coffee. "No seriously," Naomi smiled, "You have to have some sort of hobby, like…its painting, you paint don't you?" Emily laughed. "No! I don't paint. I'm not that sad. But you're right actually, I do have a hobby. I'm really into photography." Naomi grinned. "And there it is! I'm never wrong about a person; I knew you were artsy-fartsy the minute I saw you. In that case Ems, you're gonna _love _Camden." Emily giggled into the salad.

They finished their lunch and the conversation passed between them very easily. Mostly about Uni and their courses and hobbies. Emily couldn't believe how easy she'd found it to make friends with so many people, so quickly, and how easy it was to talk to Naomi now. If she had been in this situation two years ago, she never would've made any progress on the friend's front. As they were leaving Freddie threw her a smirk and a wink and she was worried she _would _have to set the poor boy straight at some point. Thankfully Naomi hadn't seen. They drove down wide, built up streets with huge shopping centres and hundreds of restaurants and cafés. Emily watched intently as the city flew by around her. It was massive and she knew she would easily get lost in it. Most of the people hurried by with scarves that covered their mouths and noses and heavy coats buttoned up to their throats. She smiled at the countless coloured umbrellas that bobbed down the pavements and the people darting into pubs and shops just to escape the cold. Naomi took a turn into a narrow lane and parked beside the curb of the footpath. "It's best to walk from here." She grinned, getting out of the car. Emily followed her eagerly and almost did a double take when they reached Camden Main Street.

All she could do was stare open mouthed at the sights surrounding her. Her body was on sensory overload. There were literally hundreds of people milling about the place. Stalls and shops took up nearly every inch of space available on each side of the road, but the most beautiful thing about it, were the splashes of _colour _that were everywhere. Pinks and greens and blues and yellows. Nearly every building was a different colour; it was such a phenomenal contrast to the rest of the grey, industrialised parts of the city. She was beaming, knowing that she would spend the majority of her free time in this niche of wonderful. She turned to Naomi who was smiling at her, watching her drink it all in. "I knew you'd love it." She said quietly and the look in her eyes was nothing short of appreciation. Emily's heart skipped a little. She had the feeling Naomi had planned this, for her. "I just wish I'd brought my camera." Naomi shook her head and grinned. "Next time Ems, there's no time for that now, far too much to see." She said grabbing her hand and pulling her down the street. _'Next time.' _was all Emily could think as they dodged the people on the sidewalks. Naomi looked over her shoulder to Emily, "I _have _to show you this record store. It's fucking amazing!" she yelled, as they came to a stop outside a shop with paint-peeled blue walls and missing lettering. She could just make out the name 'Third Wave Music' on the sign. Inside it smelled musty, like old books and cardboard, with the unmistakable scent of vinyl. There were racks upon racks of records and shelves completely wedged with albums and artists she'd never even heard of. "This is my favourite place." Naomi said as she ran her hand across a section labelled 'New Wave' "I can see why." Emily said as she browsed through a block of Bob Marley and smiled when she saw some of the album art. She didn't know how long they were there for, just browsing and occasionally exchanging an excited smile, but it felt like hours. "There's something so beautiful about them, isn't there?" Emily had said when they were leafing through the same section. "I mean, there isn't the same amount of pleasure in buying a C.D. I never feel like I'm really contributing to the artist. But, when you look at a record you can see the effort that went into it and…it just, feels like something…more."

Naomi's eyes had shone at that and her smile almost grew from ear to ear, but then it faltered and she looked at the record in her hands instead. "Natasha hates them. She hates this shop. And Camden on the whole really." She smiled sadly. "Why?" Emily asked, not at all surprised. Naomi shrugged, "Says it's too crowded, too noisy and stuff." She muttered and turned away to the next aisle. Emily didn't push it after that, but even as they explored different shops and talked about different things, she could sense Naomi's heart was no longer in it and her mind was elsewhere. Eventually they made their way back to the car and Emily shoved the bag of clothes she'd bought behind one of the back seats. Climbing into the front, Naomi gave her a brief smile before starting the car. They drove mostly in silence as the evening descended and whenever Emily tried to strike up a conversation Naomi answered with something dismissive or non-committal. She didn't understand what had happened between then and now, but Naomi almost looked uncomfortable when they pulled up beside her flat. Emily struggled for words; she didn't know what to say that wouldn't sound like they'd just been on a first date. "Well I guess I'll see you tomorrow then." Naomi said, smiling half-heartedly. Emily just nodded and stepped out of the car "Thanks." She said as Naomi looked at her before she started to pull away and the blonde just nodded and waved.

'_What the fuck was that?!' _Emily's insides churned with confusion as she stumbled into the house. "Oh hello Emily, I was just going to-" "Not now JJ, sorry, I'm going to bed." She said, trudging down the hall. She flopped onto her bed and couldn't shake the feeling that she'd been cheated somehow. She wanted answers; she didn't know how to deal with beautiful bi-polar blondes. She picked up her phone, wanting to talk to _somebody _about it. She flicked through her contacts before stopping on the one person who could tell her what to do. She hesitated over her name, her finger hovering over the call button, but in the end she couldn't do it. She couldn't call Katie.


	5. Chapter 5

**Heeey :) So here's the next chapter, from Naomi's P.O.V (at last) this one's a bit short but pretty tense and dramatic, so be prepared, and it also provides a little insight to Natasha :P Anyway, I hope you enjoy, and I'm seriously grateful for all the lovely reviews I've received, so thank you! Until next time**

**Claire x **

Naomi sighed heavily as she entered her pokey flat and dropped her keys onto the hallway table. "Hey babe." Natasha called from the kitchen. She shrugged off her jacket and dumped it onto a kitchen chair. The smell of spaghetti filled the room. She smiled as her girlfriend dropped the wooden spoon she was holding and wrapped her arms around her waist. Natasha reached up and kissed her, tugging on her bottom lip slightly. "Hey." Naomi said quietly, tucking a strand of Natasha's hair behind her ear. Her girlfriend smiled and went back to stirring the spaghetti.

Naomi sat down heavily and pushed a cigarette between her lips. She lit it, exhaled and watched the tendrils of blue-grey smoke curl about her fingertips. "So," Natasha said after a moment's silence, "Where did you go?" Naomi almost coughed as she inhaled and tipped the ash into a nearby glass. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Well, you usually come straight here after Uni, unless you have work, or you're with Eff. So, I was just wondering, where you were?" Natasha turned to face her, a false curiosity in her eyes. Naomi knew that look. It was an expression she'd seen her girlfriend wear on numerous occasions; it was control and it both angered and terrified her. "Jesus Tash," she huffed as she stubbed the fag out into the glass. "Are you tracking my every move now?" Naomi jumped when the wooden spoon clattered along the countertop; Natasha marched over to her and gripped one of the kitchen chairs. "You know I don't _track _you." She hissed, "I hate it when you say stuff like that." Her knuckles were turning white and she could _feel _the anger rolling off her in waves. Naomi had never seen her this angry, it was tying knots in her stomach. She'd encountered her girlfriends controlling side plenty of times before, but never to the extent of the girl quivering with rage on front of her. She swallowed and reached out to lay a hand on Natasha's. The girl flinched and withdrew her hand sharply. Naomi's eyes widened, this was completely new territory. "Tash, what's wrong?...I-I wasn't anywhere…I was-" "You're lying," Natasha said quietly, closing her eyes and exhaling heavily. "You were with _her. _Weren't you?" Naomi could feel the panic rising in her throat, as Natasha's emerald eyes bore into her own.

"With who?!" She demanded, managing to sound much calmer than she felt. "Oh, don't play dumb Naoms, it doesn't suit you." She growled and edged closer to her. She now stood with one hand on her hip and the other still gripping the chair. "You were with that Red-Head from the club. You were with _Emily." _This time Naomi just felt pissed off to her core. She stood up quickly and Natasha was momentarily surprised. "What the _fuck _Natasha?! What the hell's gotten into you tonight? Yes! I was with Emily, so fucking what, she's my _friend. _And if you absolutely _must _know, I took her to Camden, which you hate! Am I not allowed to have _friends _now?! Jesus Christ! Fuck you Tash!" Naomi was right up in her face, breathing heavily. Girlfriend or not, this was ridiculous and she was so sick of the way Natasha treated her, and had been treating her for years. Suddenly, Natasha burst into tears and Naomi immediately regretted her outburst. The boiling rage she'd felt, had been replaced by a sickening worry in the pit of her stomach. "Fine," Natasha said, grabbing her handbag. "Shit, where are you going Tash?...don't-I" "Save it Naomi." Natasha cut her off with a raised hand. She stood in the doorway her bag on her shoulder and tears spilling down her cheeks. "Ask yourself this question though," she yanked open the door, "If Emily is only your _friend, _thenwhy did you lie to me?" And with that the door was slammed in her wake.

Naomi slumped down into the chair again, and it was only after she had been sitting there for a few minutes that she realised there were tears of her own, dripping down her nose and staining her jeans. She felt beyond conflicted, both angry and sickened with worry. What had just happened? When had Emily become such an issue? She already knew the answer though, deep inside her, there was this tingling feeling whenever she thought about the red-head and it was something she'd never experienced with Natasha. This was so out of her hands she couldn't form a rational thought about what to do. She was surprised when a strangled sob escaped her lips and echoed around the empty apartment. She picked up her phone and fumbled with the keypad, her fingers trembling. She answered on the second ring. "Hello?" came the croaky, subdued voice, from the other end of the line. "Effy…I-I" "I'll be there in five minutes." The line went dead and Naomi stared at the phone in her lap wondering what to do. She lit another cigarette and took a long drag, feeling the nicotine coursing through her veins. It did nothing however, to relax her. There was a knock on her door and she was at it in a second, yanking on the handle and flinging it open.

"You look like shit." Effy said as she breezed by her into the flat. It wasn't a joke or an attempt to ease the tension. Naomi followed her to the living room where Effy was already lighting a spliff and reclining on one of the armchairs. She sat down and ran her hands through her hair. "I fucked up." She whispered into the space between them. "I doubt that very much," Effy said nonchalantly, passing her the spliff. Naomi took it and realised she was still holding the cigarette. She threw it onto the ground and met Effy's steely gaze. "I-Natasha, she…" Effy just motioned for her to smoke. She took several rapid tokes and held her breath until she felt feint, before exhaling slowly and passing it back to the brunette. "What happened?" Effy asked after she'd let Naomi take a moment to relax. "I met a girl." Effy rolled her eyes and smirked, bringing the spliff up to her lips again. She didn't say anything, just waited for the blonde to continue. "Her name's Emily…and.." "And?" Effy prompted. Naomi took a deep breath and the whole story tumbled out of her mouth. Effy sat there in silence, smoking and waiting for Naomi to finish. When she was done, she lit another spliff and passed it straight to Naomi. "Naomi, you know you haven't _actually _done anything wrong?" she said. Naomi's eyes widened, "But I _have _Eff! If I had just told Tash about Emily, then none of this would've happened! She wouldn't think that-that I-" "That you what?" Naomi looked at her then and Effy could see the unmasked fear in her eyes. "That you love her." She said simply, brushing some ash off her t-shirt. Naomi flinched, "What? That's ridiculous Eff, I've just met her, how the fuck could I be in love with her?" Effy held Naomi's eyes with her own. "I don't know Naomi. But you do. I know it, you know it and Natasha obviously knows it. That's why she's not here and that's why you called me." Fresh tears were spilling down Naomi's cheeks and she gripped the arms of the chair tightly.

"What if she does something really stupid Eff? And –and it's my f-" "It's _not _your fault!" Effy cried, folding her arms indignantly. "I told you, you haven't _done_ anything! And you can't keep blaming yourself for Natasha's condition. How are you going to live your life if you keep punishing yourself every time she reacts badly? You can't do that. Its torture…believe me. I know." She added quietly, getting up and sitting beside her. "What do I do Eff?" "You already know the answer to that." She said, a hint of regret in her voice. "But I _can't._" Naomi whispered, balling her hands into fists. She was angry with herself and angry with Natasha for turning her into something she wasn't. She hated the fact that she was obedient and a subject to Natasha's every whim, but what other choice did she have? As if reading her mind Effy was on her feet and had turned to face her. Her coat was on and the bag of spliff she'd pulled out was nowhere to be seen. "You _always _have a choice Naoms. Some feisty blonde told me that once. Natasha's problems are _not _your problems, whether you'd like to admit it or not." They were at her door now and Naomi met her eyes one last time. "The Naomi Campbell I know is in there somewhere. Get her back." She said before gripping her into a tight hug and walking down the hall.

Naomi closed the door and somehow managed to crawl into bed. She didn't even have time to process their conversation before sleep had gripped her in a tight embrace.


	6. Chapter 6

**Okay. So I am so, so sorry about how long it's taken me to update this. It's seriously been AGES and I feel so bad :( I'm not sure if I even mentioned this before, but I was in my last year of school this year and I've been doing some big exams over the past few weeks and in the run up I was studying like it was nobody's business :L I think I did okay in most of them and the good news is I'm now FREE to update regularly again! :D So again I'm really sorry and I hope you can forgive me, because my updates have been so bad…I'll try much harder from now on :) and to those of you who have stuck by me and are still reading this; thank you SO much! You're all stars! Anyway, here's the next chapter and I hope you all enjoy :) Please, please review and I'll keep at it :) **

**Claire x**

Emily was engrossed in her psychology text books, a steady flow of the theories of personality traits bouncing around her head. She was blasting her music so loud she felt sure that even the university librarian could hear it. Once or twice when she'd glanced up she'd thought she'd seen her bobbing her head in time to the beat of 'Love Will Tear Us Apart.' She was just clickwheeling through her song selections when someone ripped the ear buds from her. She jumped and her head snapped up to see a grinning Cook and a nervous looking JJ. "Red! Aint it time for your lunch break yet?" The librarian shot him a disapproving look; Cook couldn't whisper if he tried. She grinned up at them and gathered her things. "You're not even supposed to be here Cook." She said as they crossed the threshold of the library. JJ seemed to let out a breath he'd been holding once they were outside. "I told him Emily!" He blurted, "I told him he would be violating several University rules if he showed up unannounced in the library, not to mention the fact that Cook doesn't know the _meaning_ of the word _whisper _and on top of that I told him that you wouldn't want to be disturbed during your studies and-" "Alright JJ, no harm done eh?" Cook chuckled, nudging his friend affectionately. Emily smiled at their charming banter and once again felt privileged to have made friends so easily. "So, what brings you here then Cook?," she smirked, "Finally decided to get a proper education?" Cook laughed and placed his hand over his heart, pretending to be wounded. "Nah babe, Uni aint for me, but I came to get ya because apparently, Freds has some news for us and I've waited long enough to know what it is." He grinned and strutted happily ahead, blatantly giving girls the once-over as he went.

Outside Kingston Café, Emily's heart sank. She hadn't returned since she had gone there with Naomi and as she turned off the ignition of her car the memories were flooding back. She didn't understand what had happened between them. They had gotten on so well and Naomi had at least _seemed_ to be enjoying her company. However, after two weeks of no contact with the blonde; Emily had come to the conclusion that Naomi had had no interest in her, but had merely taken pity on the poor, lost, little red-head with no friends. She hadn't even run into her at Uni. She sighed and closed her car door a little more forcefully than necessary. "Whoa Red, what's got your knickers in a twist all of a sudden?" Cook asked as she pushed the glass door of the Café open. She smiled, "Nothing, just wondering what Freddie's big news is." Cook grinned toothily, "Well, let's ask him then, shall we?" He pointed over to the counter where Freddie was shrugging his jacket off, having just arrived for his shift. "Fredster! What's the big news then? We're all dying to know." Cook bounced over to the counter and clapped Freddie on the back. "Fellah's," Freddie smiled and then grinned when he saw Emily. "Emily. Always a pleasure to see you here." He said, his eyes trained on her. Emily looked away, uncomfortable under his gaze but said nothing. "Alright, enough with the foreplay, what's the story?" Cook chuckled. A light blush painted Freddie's cheeks as he turned to Cook. "Uh, right yeah...uhm party at mine tonight, from whenever till, well, whenever. And don't bring anybody but yourselves because I've already invited a fuck load of people." "YEEEEEEEEEEESS! PARTY! This is gonna be mint! Let's get fucking MENTAL!" Cook yelled shaking JJ by the shoulders. JJ grimaced, "Yes, mental, I'll bring extra of my pills then shall I?" He laughed. Cook's eyes widened and he grinned devilishly. "NO. No Cook, absolutely not. Not after what happened last time." JJ spluttered. Cook laughed, "I'm just messin' wiv ya Jay, there'll be plenty of proper pills going round if I have anything to do with it." JJ grimaced; "I never should've brought the subject of pills into conversation. Stupid." He muttered. Emily giggled softly and shook her head.

"So what can I get you then?" Freddie grinned, a pen and pad at the ready. "Actually, I have to get back; I have another lecture in half an hour." Emily said, frowning at her watch. Freddie's face fell but as soon as the expression was there, it was gone again, and he was smiling. "Alright Red, see you tonight then, I'll be picking you up at 10pm sharp. Be ready." Cook said, wriggling his eyebrows. She rolled her eyes as she headed out. "See you later." She called and waved as she pushed the heavy door.

Emily couldn't count the number of times she'd battled with herself over calling Katie. She hadn't spoken to her twin sister in a whole year and not a day went by where she didn't feel like a part of her had been cruelly ripped away. She had been stolen from her, essentially. It was 9:45pm and she, once again, found herself staring at her sisters contact information until it became blurry and was no longer legible. She sighed heavily and shoved her phone into her jacket pocket; defeated by her own meekness again. She blinked rapidly to rid herself of the tears that were threatening to fall. When she'd come out to her family, admittedly it wasn't the way she'd imagined it. It had all sort of happened at once, as she'd been swept up in a messy relationship with one of her classmates and ended up with her heart broken. Not only by the girl, but by her own family as well. She knew her mother wasn't going to take it well, especially with the way she'd sort of blurted it over dinner, just to piss her off; but she _never _imagined Jenna would be as underhanded as to convince Katie to treat her with the same disgust and exasperation. Katie refused to speak to her for most of the summer after they'd finished college and when she finally did, she acted like it had never happened, and of course, their relationship wasn't the same. Eventually Emily couldn't take the falseness of it any longer and missed her sister so much that she moved out to Uni early. What had hurt her most was that Jenna had broken down in apology upon her departure, but she hadn't even gotten as much as a goodbye text from Katie.

Just then, JJ popped his head around her door. "Uhm, E-Emily, Cook's here." He stuttered, looking anywhere in the room except at her. She smiled getting up and ducking her head to his eye level. He was so adorable sometimes. "It's alright JJ, I'm decent," she laughed, "let's go then." JJ looked relieved and he nodded leading the way. "Well Emilio! You're looking top notch." Cook grinned, linking arms with her and straightening up like a gentleman. "The girls won't be able to keep their hands off ya!" Emily laughed as they walked to Cook's busted up car. "Thanks Cook, both you gentlemen clean up pretty well too." Cook opened the door for her and grinned widely; "Seatbelts ladies, I can't exactly say I've got a licence."

Freddie's place was fairly small but Emily was surprised by how many people he'd managed to fit in the three bedroom apartment. The kitchen was like any cliché American college party; where all the alcohol was laid out on the table and there was that one guy, mixing _everything. _He would also be the guy, later on in the film, that pukes in a bush or plant pot when the police show up and everyone scatters. Emily was just pouring herself a third vodka and coke when she felt an arm slide around her waist. She looked up to see a very merry Freddie. "Ems. Emily..." he slurred, grinning like a twat. Emily tried to smile but felt as though it probably came off as a grimace. She couldn't help it, Freddie was a nice guy but there was something about him that irritated her, she could sense his neediness in nature and it put her off him slightly. "Hello Freddie." She sighed, trying to wriggle free of his arm subtly, but he held her firmly in place. "Emily, I wanted to ask you something." It was nearly impossible to understand him in his drunken state and the ridiculously loud music wasn't helping. "Freds, can you wait a minute? I just wanted to get some fresh air." She yelled over the bass. Freddie just continued to grin so she took it as her answer and struggled free of his arm in search of the back door. She found it easily enough and after elbowing her way past a couple making out in the utility room; stumbled into the alley behind the house.

It was blissfully quiet and she ran her hands through her vibrant red hair, inhaling the cool September night. The click and snap of a zippo lighter to her left made her look up sharply. The girl exhaled the smoke and the cloud floated slowly away and deliquesced until it was gone. The skinny brunette leaned against the white pebble-dash wall, with one arm folded across her chest. The other; the one holding the cigarette, hung limply by her side. Her eyes didn't even flick in the redhead's direction when she addressed her. "So you're Emily." The girl almost whispered; there was a pleasant hoarseness to her voice that resonated in Emily's ears. "Excuse me?" Emily answered, inwardly cringing at her choice of words. "I-I mean yes. I'm Emily. But. How did you know?...Have we met before?" The girl shifted her weight to one foot and turned to face Emily. Her piercing blue eyes regarded her with slight curiosity and something else that Emily couldn't quite place. The ghost of a smirk played around the corners of the brunette's mouth and just by looking at her now, Emily could tell she was an enigma. "Not yet. But we will." She said, exhaling another soft cloud of smoke that drifted towards Emily before it disappeared. "Effy." The girl said holding out her hand. Emily took it. It was cold, but the grip was firm. She was dumbfounded, having never met anyone like the brunette before, although, instinctively, she liked her. Respected her even. Effy stubbed the butt of her cigarette out on the wall and dragged her foot across its squashed form before turning to the door. Her long, slender fingers hesitated when the handle was halfway down. "Naomi's a bit dense. Sometimes she needs a proper shove to get her going. Talk to her." She said and when Emily blinked again, she was gone. Once she recovered from her Effy induced stupor, she frantically searched the stuffy house for her, hoping for more information about Naomi. She _did _say Naomi, does she _know _her? Are they _friends_? She wondered, but the girl was gone and Emily suspected; back through whatever vortex she'd popped out of.

She sighed in defeat and when she couldn't spot Cook or JJ anywhere, she decided to go home. During the car ride she leaned her head against the window. She was beginning to regret having come to Uni at all. She'd only been there a month or two and already her heart was heavy and she was so confused by the people around her, they made her head spin. Why the fuck couldn't anyone just give her a straight answer anymore?, why did they all have to be so fucking cryptic? By the time she'd reached her room and flung her handbag into a corner, she was so angry she grabbed her phone and pressed it forcefully to her ear. The mobile tones sounded invasively until on the fifth ring she heard a sheepish; "Emsy?" "Katie." She barked.


End file.
